Water closet flush guide



Oc t. 27, 1959 V. O. HOLLINGSWORTH WATER CLOSET FLUSH GUIDE Filed April 29, 1958 INVENTOR L Q HOLLINGSWORTH ATTORNEYS United States Patent WATER CLOSET FLUSH GUIDE Vernon 0. Hollingsworth, Wharton, Tex.

Application April 29, 1958, Serial No. 731,648

1 Claim. (Cl. 4-56) The present invention relates to water closet flush guides, and particularly to guides for the float valve stem.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a movable guide for a float guide valve stem which is utilized to raise the valve from its sealing position.

Another object of the invention is to provide a float valve stem guide which can be attached to the float valve stem without the use of tools.

A further object of the invention is to provide a guide for float valve stems which is supported on the flush lever and has no connection to the fixed portions of the flush tank.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent in the following specification when considered in the light of the attached drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of a water closet with the invention attached thereto, shown partially broken away for convenience of illustration.

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the invention with the float valve stem shown in broken lines.

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical crosssection taken along the line 3-3 of Figure 2, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 4 is an enlarged horizontal cross-section taken along the line 44 of Figure 2, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring now to the drawings in detail wherein like reference characters indicate like parts throughout the several figures, the reference numeral indicates generally a water closet of the type having a stool 11 and a flush tank 12 supported thereon. The flush tank 12 has a conventional valve seat 13 at the lower end thereof surrounding the discharge conduit leading to the stool 11. A float valve 14 is arranged to seat on the valve seat 13 to seal water within the flush tank 12. A vertical valve stem 15 is detachably secured to the float valve 14 and extends upwardly therefrom. The valve stem 15 has an eye 16 formed integrally on the upper end thereof, for reasons to be assigned. The valve stem 15, valve 14, flush tank 12 and stool 11 are all of conventional design and operate in the conventional manner.

A flush lever 17 is mounted conventionally in the flush tank 12 and operated by a handle 18 connected thereto. The flush lever 17 has a plurality of attaching apertures 19 formed therein in horizontally spaced relation.

A guide member, generally indicated at 20, comprises an inverted U-shaped elongated yoke 21 having a hook 22 threaded thereon to engage in one of the apertures 19 to secure the yoke 21 to the flush lever 17. The lower ends of the yoke 21 are secured by welding or the like to the outer wall of a cylindrical body 23. The body 23 is weighted, in any suitable manner, to keep the tank ball or valve 14 and the flush guide in line with the flush valve seat 13.

A guide tube 24 is arranged axially within the body 23 and is secured thereto by a pair of annular circular spacers 25, 26 arranged in spaced apart parallel relation at opposite ends of the cylindrical body 23 and guide tube 24. The annular spacers 25, 26 are welded or attached to the body 23 and guide tube 24 so that With the yoke 21 the guide member 20 is an integral unit.

The tube 24 has a bore 27 with a diameter slightly greater than the diameter of the valve stem 15 so that the valve stem 15 can slide freely therethrough while being maintained in axially aligned relation to the tube 24.

In the use and operation of the device, the yoke 21 is suspended from the flush lever 17 by means of the hook 22 so that the bore 27 of the guide member 20 is axially aligned with the seat 13. The stem 15 is inserted through the bore 27 and secured to the float valve 14 with the eye 16 positioned above the tube 24.

In flushing the water closet 10, the handle 18 is depressed raising the flush lever 17 and moving the guide member 20 upwardly so that the upper end of the tube 24 engages the eye 16 to lift the valve 14 from the seat 13 permitting water to escape from the flush tank 12 into the stool 11. On releasing the handle 18, the guide member 20 is permitted to descend by gravity while the float valve 14 float-s on the surface of the water in the flush tank 12 and descends as the water passes outwardly into the stool 11.

The elongated tubular guide 24 has suflicient contact with the stem 15 to prevent axial and angular displacement thereof and the stem 15 moves freely through the guide member 20 both in flushing and sealing movements.

Having thus described the preferred embodiment of the invention, it should be understood that numerous structural modifications and adaptations may be resorted to without departing from the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

A water closet flush guide for use in water closet flush tanks of the type including a flush lever, a float valve, an upright valve stem detachably secured to said float valve, comprising an upright inverted U-shaped yoke having spaced apart parallel depending legs, a hook having an eye through which is threaded said yoke for detachably securing said yoke to said flush lever, a cylindrical body positioned between the lower ends of said parallel legs with said parallel legs secured to opposite sides thereof, the axis of said cylindrical body extending parallel to said legs, a guide tube positioned axially in said cylindrical body, and a pair of spaced apart parallel annular spacer members secured between opposite ends of said guide tube and said cylindrical body forming a hollow weighted cylinder and fixedly securing said guide tube in said cylindrical body with the valve stem adapted to be slidably mounted therein, said guide tube having a diameter slightly greater than the diameter of the valve stem for slidably mounting the valve stem therein with said guide tube being adapted to maintain said valve stem against axial and angular displacement.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Yorks Nov. 27, 1923 

